Chocolate plaited scone

I have no idea what made me think of doing this, but the other morning when setting ingredients out to make chocolate scones, I thought maybe I could roll up the scone dough in to a roulade shape. I decided to have a go and, once the roll was complete, I went a stage further and thought I bet I can do the same as with a bread wreath or kringle – why not try! So try I did, and it came out pleasingly well. The only innovation in scone shape is usually to veer off from traditional circles or wedges and use a different shape cutter. Ooo steady there folks with your cutting edge hexagon-shaped scones! So, here’s how to do a genuinely unusual sweet scone…

The basis of the scone recipe comes from The River Cottage’s Bread book, however I did tweak the amount of cream a little. [I rarely use someone else’s recipe but I just can’t fault this one (in fact the whole book is fabulous)]. The addition of the chocolate and chocolate chips, the cutting and plaiting and the double baking is entirely my own invention and I’m chuffed with how well they came out!

Makes about 12 (depends how generous or meanly you like to slice!)

Equipment

Baking tray, lined

Large bowl

Palette knife and sharp knife

Jug

Rolling pin

Ingredients

Plain flour – 300g (I used an unbleached organic flour for this)

Unsalted butter – 75g

Baking powder – 2 teaspoons

Caster sugar – 50g

Double cream – 100g

Egg, 1

Vanilla bean paste – 1 teaspoon or Vanilla extract – 1 teaspoon

Salt – pinch

Chocolate spread – about 1/3 standard jar (I used a Waitrose one, but Nutella or any other would work too)

Chocolate chips – about 50g

Method

Put the oven on to 190C fan / 210C conventional

Rub the butter into the flour together

Beat the egg, cream and vanilla together lightly with a fork in a jug

Mix all the rest of the ingredients (except the chocolate spread and the choc chips) in to the butter and flour and bring together – do not knead

On a floured surface roll out the dough to a rectangle – about 25 cm x 35 cm

Using the palette knife, paste an even coating of the chocolate spread all over the rolled out dough

Sprinkle the choc chips over the chocolate spread

Started from a long side, roll up the dough (as you would a Swiss roll or roulade) over itself to create a tight roll

Carefully lift the roll onto the lined baking tray

Using a sharp knife cut one sharp, clean cut all the way down the roll, so that it splits in half and shows the layers you’ve just made

Twist the two halves over themselves so they look as if they are entwined

Pinch the ends together so that they do not open when baked

Bake for about 25 minutes

Leave to cool in a ‘normal’ room (ie not somewhere very cold) as it needs the residual heat to ensure it is baked throughout, as the scone dough is very thick.

It is quite impressive to present the whole thing on a large plate for afternoon tea and then carve slices off!

Thanks! It’s definitely one for chocolate lovers. I do think a rich plain scone is the ultimate purist scone, but this one came out remarkably well – better than I’d hoped. Tasted great, had the right texture and definitely gets comments!

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All recipes in this blog are my own (a tiny number are based on other recipes and are clearly attributed in this instance). All photographs and artworks are my own.

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